Quiz: Howstuffworks

What Part of the World Do These Lethal Snakes Live In?

Gavin Thagard

Image: Mark Kostich/E+/Getty Images

About This Quiz

Humans have struggled with snakes since the dawn of man. Throughout the centuries, these slithery creatures have both mystified and horrified us as various cultures portrayed them as evil incarnations of everything from demons to all-knowing dragons. With a bad reputation, snakes have been collected and used for torture and even murder. They have kept travelers from venturing too far at night. They have even stressed villagers out to the point they can't sleep for fear of waking up to a cold belly crawling across them.

Not much has changed, of course. The most deadly snakes are still feared around the world and cause hundreds of deaths each year, especially in areas where medical treatment is scarce. The more that human settlement expands, the more we will encounter snakes as well. In some parts of the world, venomous snakes have already started adapting to urban settlements, but humans are still struggling to adapt themselves.

How much do you know about the most lethal snakes and the regions on this planet they call home? Here's a quiz where you can find out if you are up for the challenge. Get started and see if you're ready for an encounter with one of these lethal creatures!

Jack Reynolds/Moment Open/Getty Images

The inland taipan is the most venomous snake in the world. Do you know where it's found?

Australia

North America

China

Russia

The inland taipan lives in the semi-arid parts of Australia. It's rarely encountered and can be quite shy when it is.

WikiCommons via Thomas Brown

An elapid snake, where is the many-banded krait found?

Africa

Europe

China

South America

Many-banded kraits are a black or dark blue color. They have white bands, thus the name many-banded, all the way down their bodies.

Ari Karyadi/Moment/Getty Images

The Peron's sea snake has a spine on its head. Where is it found?

South Africa

Gulf of Thailand​

Canada

India

Offspring from the Peron's sea snake develop inside the body of the snake. Females usually have around 10 babies per litter.

Howard Pugh (Marais)/Moment Open/Getty Images

The black mamba is the fastest moving land snake. Where is it located?

Japan

Australia

North America

Africa

Black mambas will strike multiple times if threatened. Each strike is filled with deadly venom, making these snakes extremely dangerous.

Rithwik photography/Moment/Getty Images

Where is the spectacled cobra located?

Europe

United States

South America

India

Spectacled cobras are also called Indian cobras. They are known for their hoods, which they display when threatened.

R. Andrew Odum/Photodisc/Getty Images

The fer-de-lance is a pit viper located where?

Russia

South America

India

Southeast Asia

In Costa Rica, nearly half of all snakebites come from the fer-de-lance. These snakes are hard to spot because they often hide among fallen leaves.

R. Andrew Odum/Photodisc/Getty Images

The common death adder is native to what region?

North America

South America

Australia

Japan

Death adders do not seek prey like other snakes in Australia. Instead, they are ambush predators, known for hiding until prey passes by.

Placebo365/E+/Getty Images

One of two species of water cobras, where is the banded water cobra located?

Africa

Cambodia

Britain

South America

Banded water cobras are rarely seen by humans. This is because they spend most of their time underwater and rarely venture far from a water source.

James Gerholdt/Stockbyte/Getty Images

Tiger rattlesnakes are known for their aggressive nature. Where are they located?

Australia

China

United States

Russia

The color of a tiger rattlesnake ranges from blue-gray to orange-brown. The color of the snake is divided by dark bands, resembling a tiger.

WikiCommons via Boris Smokrovic

Where else is the Taiwan cobra located other than Taiwan?

China

Middle East

Africa

Europe

The Taiwan cobra is not picky when it comes to food. These snakes will swallow anything that will go down their throats from fish to birds to other snakes.

Daniel Hernanz Ramos/Moment/Getty Images

Where can you find the Gaboon viper?

South America

North America

Australia

Africa

The Gaboon viper is the largest viper in Africa. These snakes can weigh up to 45 pounds and reach lengths of six feet.

Kristian Bell/Moment Open/Getty Images

One of the most deadly snakes each year, where is the saw-scaled viper located?

Mexico

India

France

Brazil

Part of the danger of a saw-scaled viper is that they live in areas near human settlements. They are also ambush predators who will camouflage themselves while waiting on prey.

Richard Sharrocks/Moment/Getty Images

The eastern brown snake is also known as the common brown snake. Where is it found?

Europe

Australia

North America

China

The eastern brown snake is the second most venomous snake in the world. Even new borns can be dangerous for humans if bitten.

Tom Brakefield/Photodisc/Getty Images

Where can you find the eastern diamondback rattlesnake?

Southeast Asia

South Africa

United States

Russia

The eastern diamondback rattlesnake is the largest known species of rattlesnake. These snakes are most common in the southeastern region of the United States.

WikiCommons via H. Krisp

A deadly pit viper, where is the west coast green rattlesnake located?

Canada

Britain

India

Mexico

A bite from a west coast green rattlesnake produces a large amount of venom. Luckily, these snakes are not as aggressive as other rattlesnake species.

WikiCommons via H. Krisp

Known for its nasal horns, where is the rhinoceros​ viper located?

Africa

Australia

China

Japan

The rhinoceros viper lives in wet environments such as rainforests and swamps. These snakes can be identified by their triangular heads and the hornlike scales on their nose.

Zoonar RF/Zoonar /Getty Images Plus

Where is the common adder found?

Europe

India

Japan

South America

Common adders are the most dangerous snakes found in Europe. Since these snakes travel so far north, they will often hibernate during the winter when food is scarce.

Corey Hayes/Moment Open/Getty Images

Common in urban areas, where is the red-bellied black snake found?

China

Russia

United States

Australia

The red-bellied black snake is not an aggressive snake. However, they often encounter humans living on the east coast of Australia, resulting in multiple snakebites per year.

WikiCommons via Harold van der Ploeg

The Samar cobra is a venomous spitting cobra. Where is it located?

Argentina

Philippines​

Canada

India

The Samar cobra is dangerous both for its venomous bite and for spraying venom. The venom from these snakes can cause paralysis and respiratory​ failure.

Siddhartha De Photography/Moment Open/Getty Images

With one of the most painful bites of any snake, where is the Russell's viper located?

Taiwan

Japan

India

Russia

The Russell's viper was named after herpetologist Patrick Russell. The snake is also called Daboia or "the lurker" in Hindi.

WikiCommons via Nihonjoe

Where can you find the mamushi pit viper?

China

Taiwan

Japan

Philippines​

The mamushi is the most common snake in Japan. These snakes bite a few thousand people in Japan each year, resulting in several deaths if medical treatment is not received.

WikiCommons via Greg Hume

Known for their long tails, where is the Jameson's mamba located?

United States

Africa

South America

Britain

The tail of a Jameson's mamba can stretch a quarter of the snake's length. That's quite significant considering these snakes can grow to over eight feet long.

(c) by Cristóbal Alvarado Minic/Moment/Getty Images

A dangerous pit viper, where is the tropical rattlesnake found?

Europe

India

Australia

South America

Tropical rattlesnakes are carnivores, eating prey from rodents to fish. They use their venom to paralyze their prey before eating it.

WikiCommons via Danleo~commonswiki

Where is the hundred pacer, a venomous pit viper, located?

China

France

South Africa

Canada

The hundred pacer gets its name from the belief that a person can only walk a hundred steps after being bitten by this snake. That may be a little exaggerated, but it is true that antivenom is usually required after being bitten by a hundred pacer.

R. Andrew Odum/Photodisc/Getty Images

A species of rattlesnake, where is the massasauga found?

North America

Middle East

India

Southeast Asia

Adult massasaugas are nocturnal animals, meaning they are encountered at night. During the day, they are found under rocks and limbs.

WikiCommons via Matt

With color bands similar to tigers, where is the tiger snake found?

Africa

Australia

Europe

South America

Tiger snakes have to face multiple predators, which includes humans and loss of habitat. They are vulnerable when it comes to being endangered if their population continues to decline.

WikiCommons

Where is the Okinawan habu located?

Vietnam

Cambodia

Spain

Japan

The Okinawan habu can be found on the Ryukyu Islands of Japan. These snakes enjoy hanging out along rock walls and inside tombs.

Kristian Bell/Moment Open/Getty Images

A semiaquatic viper, where is the cottonmouth found?

Russia

Pakistan

United States

South Africa

Cottonmouths are also known as water moccasins. These snakes usually don't venture too far from a water source.

WikiCommons via safaritravelplus

Part of the Colubridae family, where is the boomslang found?

India

China

Philippines

Africa

Female boomslangs are oviparous, meaning they lay eggs. They can produce around 30 eggs per cycle.

WikiCommons via Nayeryouakim

Where in South America is the golden lancehead found?

Chili

Brazil

Columbia

Argentina

The golden lancehead is only located on Ilha da Queimada Grande, an island off the coast of Brazil. Because they have such a small geographical range, these snakes are considered critically endangered.

WikiCommons via Omid Mozaffari

An extremely aggressive snake, where can you find the Caspian cobra?

East Asia

Japan

Central Asia

South Africa

The bite from a Caspian cobra can cause extreme effects within an hour. Left untreated, victims will die from respiratory failure.

Wiki Commons

Sometimes confused with nonpoisonous snakes, where is the coral snake found?

United States

Australia

Europe

South America

Coral snakes are known for their reclusive nature. They are rarely encountered by human but have a deadly bite if they are.

Tim Jackson/Photodisc/Getty Images

Growing to as much as five feet long, where in Africa can you find the Cape cobra?

Egypt

South Africa

Nigeria

Libya

The Cape cobra has a very small geographic range compared to other cobras in Africa. However, they can be found in a variety of environments from the savanna to deserts.

Visage/Stockbyte/Getty Images

Known for eating other snakes, where is the king cobra found?

Southeast Asia

Australia

Britain

Canada

King cobras are an important symbol in the culture of India. They are often associated with snake charmers, though charmers use various types of cobras and other snakes.

Rex Lisman/Moment/Getty Images

Where can you find a copperhead, a member of the pit viper family?

Africa

India

United States

Russia

Copperheads are known to pursue small prey such as insects. However, when it comes to larger prey, they are ambush predators which will find a good position to attack from.

Wikicommons via Jayendra Chiplunkar

With an appetite for their own, where can you find the common krait?

Japan

Vietnam

Korea

India

Common krait bites are known for their lack of pain. This can be deceiving, however, because muscle paralysis and respiratory failure can eventually set in.

Tom Brakefield/Stockbyte/Getty Images

Where can you find the forest cobra lurking?

Africa

Europe

North America

South America

Forest cobras can reach up to 10 feet in length. This makes it the longest species of true cobra in the world.

M Moraes/Moment Open/Getty Images

A species of pit viper, where can you find the jararaca?

Canada

Japan

China

South America

The jararaca is a very common venomous snake throughout Brazil. They are known for living in tropical forests across the region.

WikiCommons via Mark Bratton

Native to the United States, where in the country will you find the Mojave rattlesnake?

Northeast

Southwest

Southeast

Northwest

Mojave rattlesnakes choose to live in areas with limited vegetation such as deserts. These snakes are extremely deadly with some of the most potent venom of any rattlesnake.

Tom Brakefield/Stockbyte/Getty Images

Where can you find the monocled cobra?

Russia

Britain

South Asia

South Africa

Monocled cobras are famous for their O-shaped hood patterns. These snakes have been known to grow upward of seven feet long.

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